The 79th Street Gate: A Lower Division Newsletter

Dear Garden School Community:

We were all happy to be back on campus this week. The school has a different feel when we are all in the same building, living and learning. Even though we do not congregate in any one space, standing in the hallways I can hear bits and pieces of the different classes, hear students engaged in various activities, and hear students and teachers interact.

But this isn’t always possible, as sometimes various students, clusters , or teachers may be working remotely. This, too, sounds differently in our building. I have stood in the hallways and heard teachers zooming with students; at other times I have recognized a teacher’s voice, walked into the room expecting to see the teacher, only to realize that the teacher was on the screen.

I have had the opportunity to pop in and out of virtual classes to see and hear teachers and students involved in many instructional projects. Zoom meetings are becoming more common, and I hear these from our office spaces or when several teachers meet with a particular family. At other times, our Virtual Information Sessions have brought the Garden School story into homes so many potential families can hear what we all do. I have heard virtual field trips and Professional Development workshops. All this accessibility happening more smoothly through our enhancements in technology.

But most of all, I just enjoy hearing the voices of children, whether in our building, on the playgrounds, or on zoom. What a delight. And then, sometimes I enjoy the hearing the quiet, because in quietness much is being said. Hear about what is happening in Garden through the eyes and ears of the Lower Division.

Enjoy!
Bill Vogel

Mandarin is one of the two World Languages that can be heard in the Lower Division. Here, young students with little or no knowledge of Mandarin are introduced to everyday spoken Mandarin and the simplified forms of characters. The classes take a fun, interactive approach with course materials appropriate for young children. Lesson topics include introduction to Pinyin, greetings, numbers, and the proper way of introducing people. Cultural knowledge is also introduced. Practice in listening, speaking, reading, and writing can be a portion of the class lessons shared by Ms Yang, a native of Mainland China.

The early childhood classes, Nursery, Prekindergarten, and Kindergarten, have been busy discussing animals. Everyone is enthusiastic about learning to name their favorite pet at home or animal they see in the zoo. During this process, our young students gained the ability to use age-appropriate expressions to express their likes and dislikes regarding common pets and animals. Initially, students interpret and react to pictures, stories, illustrations, and songs.The Kindergarten class has been introduced to a new skill; they are writing Chinese characters.

This week, our young children are learning about 12 Chinese Zodiac Animals. Students gain the ability to use age-appropriate expressions to identify and exchange information about the Chinese zodiac animals. Initially, students interpret and react to pictures, stories and illustrations. Then, students will interact with their teacher and classmates by asking and telling about their Chinese zodiac animal signs, as they identify pictures of the zodiac animals.

The students in 1st through 3rd grades have been learning different types of clothing in Mandarin, such as 卫衣(wei yi, sweatshirt)，毛衣(mao yi, sweater)，T恤(ti xu, t shirt)，牛仔裤(niu zai ku, jeans)，运动鞋(yun dong xie, sneaker)，袜子(wa zi, socks) etc. In this multiple-days unit, students gain the ability to use age-appropriate expressions to identify and exchange information about major pieces of clothing people wear during different occasions.

Initially, students interpret and react to clothing items in the pictures. Then, they will interact with their teacher and classmates by asking and telling about the real clothes they wear, have, or like, for example, 我喜欢穿红色的卫衣 (I like to wear a red sweatshirt). As a conclusion, the class will create a clothing shop in which they describe what clothes their shop carries.

For students in grades 4 through 6, introductory French courses have been designed to engage students in phonetics, greetings, courtesy words, colors, numbers, and shapes. Various parts of speech are studied so students can create conversations about themselves, their families, and the communities around them. Lessons are very interactive as student skills are reinforced through games, projects, and songs, under the tutelage of Mr. Gomis, a native of Senegal, Africa.

Recently, family and friendship have been on the menu in the fourth grade class. Students studied possessive adjectives and the family tree. They practiced oral skills in French. The fifth graders are already “à la mode” as French words describing clothing and fashion are introduced.

As we choose equity and inclusiveness as our motto this year, our sixth graders are differentiating between adjectives that relate to moral qualities and those that express our defaults. In introducing the comparative of superiority and equality, they get to compare things, people, or animals. Robert, an avid artist, is shown here carving the adjectives that call upon our intrinsic human nature to love and accept difference.

When students enter the upper division, they may continue with the study of French, return to study Mandarin, or explore another World Language, Spanish. Courses range from introductory through Advanced Placement. Walk our halls and hear the languages.

Recently, we unveiled the new Strategic Plan to dozens of adult community members. Also, we began unpacking pieces of it with select students. After months of collaborative community level work, it was exciting to begin showing the fruits of this collective effort, and we are eager to share it with everyone.

If you were unable to join Head of School, Chris Herman, this week, he will offer a second live webinar session on Tuesday, February 2nd at 6pm. This session will be nearly identical to the first talk and is intended for those who were unable to attend on Monday. RSVP here to learn about the Garden Road to 100 strategic plan which will guide our work as we approach our centennial.

Lots of voices can still be heard after classes end. Many children participate in the Afterschool Program. Divided into clusters and distanced around campus, students participate in homework time, arts and crafts, or games of low organization. Time for snacks, personal interests, or conversation can be carved out of this program which runs until 6pm each day. The afterschool staff are attentive and vary activities to meet the needs of all the students. Contact Ms. Kim for more information.

Students in the Lower Division spent the last few weeks discovering Pop artist Keith Haring. Haring’s playful characters are instantly recognizable as they breakdance across the page, interact with each other...or get visited by UFOs. The late artist’s work can be seen in his many murals in the New York area and around the world.

This week, Pop artist Andy Warhol was the topic in the art classes. Warhol was interested in advertising and celebrity, transforming images of everyday life into beautiful creations. These projects are ongoing, but they’re shaping up nicely!

The month of January brings with it the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The children in Pre-K celebrated each other’s differences in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. After reading I am Martin Luther King, Jr. by Brad Meltzer and Martin Luther King, Jr. Day by Margaret McNamara we were inspired to talk about what makes each of us special and different. The next step in this unit of study was to revisit our All About Me posters that we made at the beginning of school. At first these posters were used to introduce students to their classmates. We were now able to look at these posters again to point out our likes, differences and similarities and how we mix together as a school family within our classroom. To further celebrate our diversity, the children painted their self-portraits to further notice how unique each person is and how this makes our world a very special place to be. These self-portraits are posted on a bulletin board titled “We Are All Different!” so they can be explored by all.

The Kindergarten students have been engulfed in a gingerbread unit over the past couple of weeks, comparing and contrasting the different variations of the Gingerbread Man story. The Gingerbread Boy, Gingerbread Girl, Gingerbread Baby, the list goes on! We used tools such as the Venn diagram to compare Gingerbread Man by Karen Schmidt to Gingerbread Boy by Paul Galdone; What characters do we see in both books? Is the setting the same or different in each book? How are the endings different? We also acted out the Gingerbread Man story in the classroom, with PreK as our audience! Each student took on a different role in the story and created hats to transform into their characters. It turned out to be a great success with lots of laughs and most importantly, teamwork!

Though we were not in school for the presidential inauguration, it was exciting to watch with students remotely and discuss the events. For many younger students this was the first inauguration in their working memory. The students made great observations ,and we celebrated President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. First grade students recorded their thoughts in journals to commemorate the special occasion. First and second graders created flags to honor this day.

Another Winning Day for the Daniel Webster Society!

On Saturday, January 23, the Daniel Webster Society - Garden's middle school interscholastic debate team - competed in their second tournament of the year, held virtually. This tournament featured 16 schools from across the tri-state area and 230 total debaters. It was split into Varsity (140 speakers) and Novice (90 speakers) divisions. Garden's two three-person teams - Sophia M., Claire O. and Juliet A. in Varsity, and Robert O., Giuliana V. and Nicoletta G. in Novice - came away with honors for the second straight tournament! The Novice team placed in the top-ten, and second overall in winning percentage while our Varsity team placed - for the second tournament running - first overall in winning percentage! They were magnificent and represented themselves and our institution with honor. Well done!

Second marking period report cards were emailed yesterday for all students beginning in the Prekindergarten Program. We all know that the more we know about a child, the better we can provide instruction and tailor activities. While formal conferences are not held at this time of year, should you feel the need for further conversation, reach out to individual teachers or to the Lower Division Head. If you have not received you child’s report, call the school at 718-335-6363.

Learn to paint "Sunset with Cherry Blossoms" at Garden's first Virtual Paint Nite hosted by our own Mr. Orlowski and the Garden Parents' Association on Friday, February 12 from 6:00 to 8:30pm.

There are two ways to participate:

$100: tax-deductible donation gets you access to the Zoom room and you provide what is on our supply list.
$150: includes a $100 tax-deductible donation, access to the Zoom room, and a Paint Nite Kit (which we will mail you) with all the supplies you'll need (Deadline to register for this option is January 29).